


Boy Next Door

by gwen (gwennoble)



Category: Teen Wolf (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Human, Alternate Universe - Neighbors, M/M, and scott is a hot piece of ass, in which derek and isaac are housemates
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-03-06
Updated: 2014-05-11
Packaged: 2018-01-14 17:30:30
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 4
Words: 7,589
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1274965
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/gwennoble/pseuds/gwen
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>It's the sweltering California summer, and Isaac Lahey is busy getting used to his grouchy roommate and assortment of odd jobs when a new, super hot boy named Scott McCall moves in next door.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Moving In

**Author's Note:**

> This is going to be part of a multi-chapter fic and will probably have a LOT of fluff. Inspired by a prompt by tumblr user scisaacanal. I hope you enjoy!

Isaac doesn’t know if he can ever get used to Derek’s singing.

He’s known him for about six months, ever since Derek posted a craiglist ad asking for a “ _Responsible and QUIET roommate_ ” who was willing to split the rent on a townhouse in Beacon Hills, California. Derek, as Isaac found out within hours of moving in with him, has possibly the world’s shortest temper. He is constantly slamming doors, yelling at inanimate objects, and locking himself in his room and brooding for hours at a time.

Isaac has also seen his soft side, because what Derek doesn’t know is that the bathroom walls are incredibly thin, and that when he sings Lorde in the shower Isaac can _definitely_ hear him.

Derek finishes his serenade, and Isaac listens to the water hiss as the shower is shut off. Derek is definitely a weird roommate, but he keeps the house clean and cooks the meals, which Isaac can’t really say for himself. He’s working five days a week walking dogs, and gardening for neighbours on weekends. It isn’t much, but a high school dropout with no parents to help him takes whatever he can get.

Isaac, who is sprawled on his bed waiting for Derek to be done with the bathroom, looks over at the clock on his nightstand. _11:15 am_ , almost time for him to go pick up the dogs. He’s just about to yell at Derek for taking ages when the older guy appears in his doorway, a towel slung across his waist.

“Did you hear about the house next to us?” Derek asks, leaning against Isaac’s door frame, “New neighbours.”

“Oh, really?” Isaac sits up and stretches, “Do you know anything about them?

“No,” Derek shrugs noncommittally, “I don’t really talk to neighbours.” 

 

 

Isaac hops down the front steps of the townhouse, five leashes clutched in his hand. It’s a sweltering hot day, making Isaac regret the dark blue scarf he wrapped around his neck.  

He pauses on the sidewalk to see who’s moving furniture into the now-occupied house next door. Two girls, one brunette and one strawberry blonde, are struggling under the weight of a black leather couch in an effort to get it up the steps, giggling every time one of them stumbles. Isaac is tempted to go introduce himself, but his shyness gets the best of him. He catches sight of another person, coming from behind the sedan parked in their driveway, and the first thought that enters his mind is  _that’s the hottest boy I’ve ever seen._

The boy is sweating in the California heat, his brown hair tousled. Isaac is still staring at him when the neighbour looks up and they lock eyes. The redhead calls out to him, “Scott, quit standing there are come help us!” and he gives Isaac a wave before joining his friends.

Isaac’s cheeks are still warm with embarrassment when he picks up Aspen the chihuahua five blocks away.

 

 

Isaac is _soaked_ in sweat. He jogged through the park with the dogs, Blitz and Digger almost dislocating his arm in their eagerness to race ahead of the others. After two hours of winding through Beacon Hills in the heat, even the big dogs are tired out. He drops off most of them, but Digger he has to pet sit for the afternoon.

They are almost at the townhouse when Isaac trips over a crack in the sidewalk and falls flat on his face. He loses his grip on Digger’s leash, and of course the boxer dog has his energy back and all he wants to do is run away from Isaac. By the time the blonde boy is on his feet again and has groaned because there’s a gash in his jeans and blood on his knee, Digger has dashed off.

 _Fuck_ , Isaac thinks to himself, wincing as he straightens out his right leg and power walks in the direction Digger went.

“Digger!” He yells, eyes squinting in the sun as he glances worriedly around. Mrs Hammond, who already has enough on her plate with the triplets, would not enjoy having a lost dog to be concerned about.

Suddenly, Isaac hears a bark coming from the backyard of one of his neighbouring houses. He’s halfway to the house’s back gate when he realizes that it belongs to that really hot boy - Scott, he remembers - and those two girls. 

He approaches the open gate tentatively, can already smell the burgers that probably drew Digger there in the first place. As he steps in, he notices that the backyard is practically empty, save for a barbecue against the outer wall of the townhouse, and that Scott is shirtless, leaning over, feeding Digger bits of burger.

He is so immersed in giving the dog the royal treatment that he doesn’t notice Isaac until the taller boy is forced to fake a cough loud enough for Scott to hear.

“Oh, hi!” Scott says, sounding surprised, “is this your puppy?”

Isaac chuckles, “No, but I’m taking care of him for the day. I, uh, kinda tripped, and he ran off.”

This makes Scott giggle, continuing to pet Digger, who is the happiest dog in the world, with a mouth full of half-cooked burger and a tail wagging dangerously fast.

Scott’s mouth turns into a frown of concern when he notices the blood and gravel stuck to Isaac’s knee, “Hey, are you alright? I can go grab the first aid kit from my house.”

“Oh, no, that’s fine!” Isaac says, fingers awkwardly playing with the ends of his scarf, “I’d better get Digger out of this heat, anyways. Digger is the dog, by the way.”

“If Digger is the dog’s name, then what’s yours? I’m Scott McCall.”

“Oh, uh, I’m Isaac. Isaac Lahey.”

Scott grabs the dog’s leash and hands it to Isaac, “Well, Isaac Lahey, I don’t have enough burgers made to invite you over tonight, but I’m having a big party here in a couple of days. You should come - and bring your housemate too, if you want. You can meet all of my friends! It’ll be totally cool, I swear.”

“Really? I mean, I’d love to!”

“Well, I’ll see you then, Isaac”, Scott smiles, flips a burger on the grill, “I’m glad I got to meet you today!”

 

 

Later, Isaac remembers to give Digger double his usual amount of good-boy treats.

 


	2. What Exactly Lacrosse Is

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which Isaac is nervous and Scott is adorable (and drunk).

“Is this shirt better? Or this one?”

Isaac is standing anxiously in front of his mirror, holding clothes up to his body as Derek watches, sitting on Isaac’s bed. He’s been trying to get the older boy to tell him what to wear for Scott’s party for a good half hour. Sadly, Derek is as uncaring as Isaac is indecisive.

“The first one, sure,” Derek mutters, not even looking at Isaac anymore, eyes glued to his phone instead.

“Derek! Stop playing candy crush and help me out, **please**. I don’t want Scott’s friends to think I’m some loser without any fashion sense.”

“Scott’s party is tomorrow night. I’m sure you have enough time to put together an acceptable outfit,” Derek scoffs, “anyways, why do you care? It’s just a barbecue, right?”

“Yeah, but it’s a big deal, okay?” Isaac reddens and looks at his feet, “I don’t have any friends my own age, I never have. Scott actually wants to hang out, which is pretty fucking amazing. So I want to make a good impression.”

Derek sighs, hops of the bed and brushes past Isaac to look through his closet. He flips through Isaac’s clothes, finally settling on one and taking the hanger off the rack. It’s a peach sweatshirt, long sleeved. Derek hands the sweatshirt to Isaac, “This will look good with those dark jeans, and your brown shoes. Casual, but fashionable.”

Grinning, Isaac accepts the clothes into his arms. “Thanks, Derek. What are you going to wear?”

“I’m not some horny teenage boy like you. I’ll wear the same clothes I wear every day. Now, are you going to keep playing dress up or can we order pizza?”

 

 

Isaac is just leaving to get the dogs the next morning when Scott bounds out of his own house, wearing a white clingy tank top and shorts, iPod in hand and sports bag slung over his shoulder. He pulls out his earbuds when he sees Isaac, smiles and waves as if they’re best buddies already.

“See you tonight, yeah?” Scott half-yells across their lawns.

“Wouldn’t miss it,” Isaac manages, trying to ignore the toned muscles outlined through Scott’s shirt, “Derek’s coming too, if that’s alright?”

“Course!” Scott glances at the screen of his iPod, “Sorry, I’d chat, but I’m late for lacrosse. Guy from work, Stiles, plays recreational with a group of dudes at the park and invited me to join.”

Scott waves again before jogging off, away from Isaac, who is left thinking that even if he doesn’t know how to play lacrosse, it must be the world’s best sport if Scott does.

 

 

When Isaac is finally ready to leave that night, he wrangles Derek from the couch, where the grouchy boy has been watching old soap operas all day. After Isaac makes one last check in the mirror to smooth down his curls, they head out to Scott’s. Isaac doesn’t know if he should bring anything, so he picks up a case of beer at the store that afternoon just in case. He can hear music coming from Scott’s backyard, feels the butterflies in his stomach. _It’s just neighbours,_ he reminds himself, _all you have to do is smile and make conversation_.

Derek seems to sense his nervousness; he gives Isaac an awkward pat on the shoulder, mutters, “don’t fuck up too spectacularly, Lahey. You’ll do fine.”

One of Scott’s housemates greets them at the back gate, the redhead Isaac recognizes from the day he saw her moving in. She looks much prettier without a couch in her arms, and extends a hand for Isaac and Derek to each shake.

“Hi, I’m Lydia! You must be Isaac and Derek, the neighbours, right?” The boys nod, “Well, Scott is over at the barbecue. We have hot dogs and burgers and those weird tofu sausages on the grill right now, so help yourself. I have no clue where my girlfriend is, but if you see the other girl that lives here, that her. Her name is Allison."

Lydia is distracted by other guests, of which there are about ten already, all chatting with each other and holding beers. Isaac spots Scott just where Lydia said he’d be, wearing a stained white apron and flipping burgers with the enthusiasm that sends one patty flying into the dirt.

“You go say hi to Scott,” Derek says, nodding his head towards their neighbour, “I’m going to go hang out near the cooler.”

Derek leaves, and Isaac is left stranded in the middle of the backyard, hands awkwardly jammed into his jean pockets.

“Yo, you’re the neighbour dude!”

Startled, Isaac turns his head to make eye contact with the scrawny, guy who seems to be talking to him. He’s lean, has a buzzcut, and is clad in a plaid button up and a pair of khakis.

“I’m Stiles,” he says, as they shake hands, “I work at the bookstore on Trent street, with Scott. We play lacrosse together, too. He says you walk dogs?”

“Among other things,” Isaac laughs, “I do whatever I can, honestly. I dropped out of high school in eleventh grade and haven’t really found any job that isn’t errands.”

“Well I commend you for being able to withstand those animals en masse, honestly. I’m more of a gecko person myself.” This earns another chuckle from Isaac, “Anyways, you seemed like you were on your way to go see Scotty? He looks like he needs a sous chef to make sure another patty doesn’t bite the dust.”

Scott is happy to see Isaac, and is definitely happy to grab him a spare apron. The barbecue is messy, unclean, and smells so strongly of meat that Isaac is afraid to go anywhere near it, but he knows he'll have a lot more fun here, with something to do, than trying to socialize with a bunch of strangers.

Scott and Isaac talk casually as they put tofu sausages into buns and try to avoid burning the hot dogs, about what exactly lacrosse is and how Scott is settling into his new house and how much better the new Spiderman movies are than the Tobey Maguire ones from 2002. Isaac doesn’t even notice when he shifts from Nervous Wreck to Casual Teen, but Scott just makes him feel like it’s effortless to have fun.

“Oh shoot!” Scott exclaims, halfway through complaining about the amount of making out Allison and Lydia do, “We’re basically out of burger patties, and we haven’t even got the chance to make our own burgers.”

Before Isaac can answer, Scott has beckoned Allison over and explains their “life or death burger crisis”, as Scott describes it.

“I’m going to take Isaac down to the grocery store for more, okay? You man the barbecue. Don’t let anything burn, Al.”

He grabs Isaac gently by the wrist, and before Isaac knows what’s happening they are weaving through the group of Scott’s guest and letting themselves out through the gate. All Isaac is thinking about is Scott light touch on the inside of his arm.

Scott lets go once they’re onto the driveway, has to run inside the house to grab some cash for the burgers. “Might as well get some more buns while we’re at it,” he announces cheerily, “ooh, and those two bite brownies. Everyone likes two bite brownies!”

They walk in friendly silence for a while, following the sidewalk down to the main road where the small grocery store is. It’s almost empty, save for the half-asleep employees manning the checkout. Isaac notices that there is a small   _Help Wanted!_  sign taped to the sliding doors at the entrance. Maybe he should consider yet another part time summer job. _Maybe I’ll see Scott more if I work where he shops._

They find the patties and buns alright, and Scott spends a good five minutes debating between the cheaper, brand-name brownies and the quality ones. “They cost more, but they taste so much better, I swear!” A staff member looks at them weird for being so loud, and Isaac is ready to run out of the store but Scott’s confidence is so infectious that Isaac doesn’t mind a bit of public embarrassment.

“That’ll be $22.45,” the girl at the till says, sounding bored, “paper or plastic?”

“Shit,” Scott says, looking down at the crumpled 20 dollar bill in his hand, “guess I’ll have to get the brand name brownies after all.”

“No, it’s alright,” Isaac fishes a handful of loose change out of his pocket, counts out two dollars and forty-five cents, “Least I can do as a party guest.”

Scott beams at him, wins first place against babies and puppy dogs for most adorable thing on earth, “Thanks, man! I owe you one.”

Scott hefts the bag up with one arm, and they leave, walking back in the amiable silence that is already becoming familiar to Isaac.

 

 

Scott is _wasted_. It’s been two hours since everyone stopped eating burgers and started really getting into the drinks, and Isaac doesn’t think he’s ever seen someone party so hard at a garden barbecue. Scott is sprawling across lawn furniture, singing along to the pop songs coming from Lydia’s CD player, and generally making a fool of himself. Isaac, who is only on his third beer and has been watching from the sidelines, is just a little tipsy and finds Scott fucking adorable.

“Hey, hey Isaac! Buddy!” Scott turns his attention away from Allison, who looks relieved to be rid of him, and trips towards Isaac. He stumbles and steadies himself against Isaac, bracing his arms on Isaac’s shoulders, “How you doing? We made burgers earlier, yeah? Good burgers. Yummy yummy. In my tummy.”

Isaac leads Scott to an empty lawn chair and helps him to sit in it properly, trying his hardest not to laugh at him. He doesn’t see Scott as much of a party boy, but so far Scott hasn’t been the most predictable of people.

“Scott, you need to stop drinking,” Isaac pries the bottle gently from Scott’s hand, “I think you need to crash. On a real bed, I mean, not a plastic chair.”

“S’fine!” Scott batts at Isaac’s face weakly, “Just gonna close my eyes for a bit, feeling a little dizzy.”

With Stiles’ help (He looks for Derek, but Derek seems to have already gone back to their house), they manage to coax Scott up the stairs to his bedroom. Scott lands face down on top of his blankets, and Stiles sees that as good enough and goes back downstairs.

Isaac takes a few seconds to glance around Scott’s room. It’s strewn with boxes and obviously still being unpacked, though there are a few photos stuck up on the wall that catch Isaac’s eye. He steps towards them, notices that they’re all of Scott and a middle aged woman who looks just like him, obviously his mom. In the photos, Scott is a few years younger, maybe twelve or thirteen, and Isaac can’t help but smile at how young and cute Scott looks.

“Isaac?” Scott mumbles from the bed, “Still here?”

“Just leaving now,” Isaac steps away from the photographs quickly and moves to hover in the doorway, “You need anything before I go?”

“Nah,” comes the reply, “You’re cool though, Isaac. Nice… nice face.”

Isaac waits for Scott to say more, but the snores coming from the bed tell him that Scott’s next words are probably going to be complaints tomorrow morning about the shitty hangover he’ll be nursing. Isaac turns off the lights in Scott’s room, closes the door halfway, and treads down the hallway back downstairs.

“Thanks for the great party!” He tells Allison and Lydia, once outside again, “Does Scott always drink like this?”

The girls laugh, “Not always,” Lydia comments shrewley, “Only when he’s nervous about impressing someone he likes.”

 

 

Isaac is halfway between the homes when he realizes she was talking about him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks to everyone for all the kudos/comments!


	3. Accidental Over-The-Pants BJ

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Isaac's getting his life together. And maybe learning to play a new sport along the way.

The manager at the grocery store gives him a scrutinizing once-over as Isaac fidgets in her office. She’s tall, blonde, and looks like she could rip Isaac’s jugular out with her perfectly whitened teeth.

“You start tomorrow,” she says suddenly, dismissing Isaac with a flick of the wrist, “Danny at counter two will show you the ropes.”

“Do you want to look over my resume first?” Isaac’s resume, which leaves much to be desired, is still in his hands.

“Whatever,” she scoffs, “you don’t look murderous. I’m Erica, your manager, and I have eyes everywhere. So don’t think about doing anything you shouldn’t. Now go.” 

Isaac leaves her office, a little worried about the idea of having Erica as his boss, and looks around for counter two. He spots his new coworker, Danny, leaning over the conveyor belt and chatting with a couple of guys as he rings up their soda and chips. Isaac hovers nearby until the dark-haired boy has no customers left to serve, and then he walks over.

“Um, hey?” The guy looks up, “I’m Isaac, I’m going to start working here tomorrow. Erica said you would show me around?”

Danny groans, “Fuck, seriously? That bitch. She’s always trying to set me up with any new gay employees for a hookup. She says I don’t get around enough. You’re not exactly my type, okay?” The boy raises a critical eyebrow at Isaac, “I like my guys buffer.”

Wide-eyed, Isaac splutters, “I’m not-what? Erica didn’t tell me anything about setting us up, okay? Anyways, I’m not really… interested.”

“Oh, you’ve got a boyfriend already?” 

“Not really,” Isaac’s blushing, hard, “I am, uh, gay, well, I’m asexual, but I am romantically attracted to dudes. Just not the sex bit.”

“Hah, Erica’s gonna hate you!” Danny takes off his apron and places the little “closed” stand on his conveyor belt, “The last guy she hired was straight. She’s never going to be able to get me laid.”

Danny motions around, “Have you ever worked in a grocery store?” Isaac shakes his head, “Of course you haven’t. Well, okay, these are the tills. We have four, but only two are ever in use at one time. This isn’t Costco, it’s the kind of place you come to if you’re out of milk or need to make a munchies run, so there isn’t much traffic. C’mon, I’ll show you everything. We close in half an hour, so it had better be quick.”

Isaac follows two steps behind Danny, who continues what seems to be a well-rehearsed tour, “We’ve got our fresh fruits and veggies over here, your standard meats and cold cuts there, your frozen foods, and your dry and canned goods. Over there near the bathrooms is our sanitary products and cleaning supplies aisle. The junk food aisle is right there, where we get the most of our shoplifters. You have to watch out for those. Erica made me clean the toilets three times a day for a full month once because I let a kid get away with a pack of Skittles.”

Danny leads him down the fruits and veggies aisle, then through a wide door to the back of the store marked as _Employees Only_. It’s not a very large room, filled mostly with crates of nonperishables for restocking the shelves. Against one of the walls is a counter, fridge, and small table.

“This is the closest to a break room we have,” Danny explains, “There’s usually some coffee in the pot there, but any other food isn’t for sharing. Employee bathroom is over here, but nobody hardly ever cleans it so I would recommend using the public ones.” Isaac nods along.

Danny looks over at the clock on the wall, before turning back towards Isaac with a huff, “We’re closing in five, so I have to get out there. You can find your way to the front. I expect to see you back here tomorrow at eight, okay?”

“Yeah, course. Thanks for showing me around!”

 

 

It’s evening by the time Isaac makes it back to the house. It’s quiet as he opens the door, until he hears a distinct “ _FUCK, fucking FUCK!!_ ” from the kitchen. Brow furrowed, he peeks around the corner to be greeted by the sight of Derek, hunched over the stove, swatting smoke away from his face. In his oven-mitt clad hands is some kind of food, charred and indistinguishable.

“Fuck!” Derek slams the dish on top of the stove, only noticing Isaac when he starts to laugh behind Derek.

“What are you doing?” Isaac asks. Derek only ever cooks them macaroni, eggs on toast, and these weird mashed potatoes that he says his mom taught him how to make. Isaac doesn’t mind the repetitive food, really, especially if this is the result from anything else.

“It’s supposed to be lasagna!” Derek chokes out, fanning desperately at the smoke with his mitts, “My sister mailed me a cookbook yesterday that says it’s full of ‘Easy, Five Minute Meals For A Desperate Student’. This effing lasagna took thirty minutes and it’s hardly even edible.”

“Oh, well I’m sure it’ll be fine!”

 

 

The lasagna isn’t fine. It isn’t even a little bit fine. The pasta crunches in Isaac’s mouth and there’s so much salt in the sauce that he has to refill his water three times. But Derek looks like an injured puppy dog underneath his angry demeanor, and Isaac doesn’t want to hurt his feelings. He even fakes enthusiasm as he digs into his second helping.

After they’ve cleared up, Isaac’s cell phone rings from the table in the front hall. He checks the screen;   _Sctt mCall_ comes up.

“Hello?” Isaac asks, confused.

“Hey, Isaac? It’s Scott. I, uh, stole your phone at the party two days ago and put my number in your contacts. And wrote your number down. Sorry. I was _really_ drunk.”

Isaac can just imagine Scott’s face on the other line, bashfully admitting to stealing his phone. Chuckling, he replies, “That’s cool. I’m surprised you managed to type out your number correctly, with how many beers you were guzzling. What’s up?”

“Well, you know how I’m on that lacrosse team thing? One of the guys, Boyd, is sick, and we need a replacement for our game tonight. I know you don’t actually know anything about lacrosse, but would you be willing to show up on the bench? We need at least 15 guys to play.”

“Uh, yeah. Sure!” Isaac tries to contain his excitement, but he’s already walking quickly with his phone upstairs to see if he still has his shorts and running shoes somewhere, “Should I meet you outside? In ten minutes?”

 

 

Scott is standing outside when Isaac leaves, his sports bag with him. He gives a little wave when he sees the taller boy come out of his house, waits for him to bound down the steps before starting to walk in the direction of the park. Isaac walks along at his side. It’s like their late night hamburger-and-brownies run; nobody else in the streets, quiet and dimly lit by lamps. Except this time there’s friendly banter, and they’re walking close enough together for their shoulders to brush.

The lacrosse field is a different story. Odd groups of scrawny twenty year old are split on each side of the field, and the shittily-made stands are filled with other scrawny twenty year olds. Scott leads Isaac towards one of the groups, where he can see Stiles, the guy from the party, already wearing shoulder pads and a jersey. Isaac takes Boyd’s clothes, since he won’t be there. They’re four sizes too big, but Isaac figures that it won’t make much difference from the bench.

“You good?” Scott says, sliding beside Isaac on the bench, “Looking great in that uniform. You and Boyd should share outfits more often.”

Isaac bumps against Scott, laughs. “So I’m just watching the game tonight?”

“Yeah, basically. Sorry to drag you here and everything, but this is my first game and I didn’t want to have to cancel it. Plus,” Scott looks down at his sneakers, “I thought you’d be the most fun to bring.”

Someone blows a whistle, and Scott springs up from the bench, grabs his lacrosse stick, and, with a wave to Isaac, joins his team on the field.

 

 

Thirty minutes later, Isaac still doesn’t understand lacrosse. It just seems like someone decided field hockey wasn’t hard enough, and didn’t have enough body checking. Isaac finds himself wincing every time Scott takes a hit from the muscular opponents. At least they’re winning. He thinks. 

Then one of Scott’s teammates falls with a thump to the ground. Isaac stands up and tries to peer over the sea of heads swarming around the guy, but only knows what’s going on when Scott jogs over to him, a look of concern on his face.

“It’s Jackson, he didn’t wear his rib pads and got stick checked. They think he may have broken a couple ribs. We’re going to have to stop the game, we don’t have enough players.”

“I can play!” the words are out of Isaac’s mouth before he even realizes what he’s said.

“Yeah? You don’t even know the rules!”

“I came to win, didn’t I?”

The smile that breaks out on Scott’s face as he wraps Isaac in a fierce hug is worth all the bruises Isaac knows he’s about to get.

 

 

Isaac _definitely_ has no clue what he’s doing. After Jackson is taken off the field, the two teams face off for possession. Before he knows what’s happening, the ball is in the air and the game has started again.

Isaac tries to stay as far away from the ball - and the other team - as possible. The only thing he pays attention to is Scott. Scott seems to be a star athlete; sprinting from one end of the field to the other, yelling out to his teammates, passing and scoring with ease. By the last minute of the game, Scott’s team is up by one and Isaac has nearly mastered the art of avoiding the action, when, almost by magic, the ball lands in the net of his stick.

“Isaac!” Scott is running beside him, “Pass! Pass!”  
  
Isaac readies himself to pass the ball over, when someone smashes into him from behind and he is flung against Scott, bringing them both to the ground. The buzzer goes off, signaling the end of the game, and Isaac stays where he is on the ground until he hears an uncomfortable cough below him.

 _Shit_ , he thinks, pushing himself up by an inch. He landed on Scott. Specifically, he landed face first into his crotch. Fuck.

“God, sorry!” Isaac scrambles off of Scott, “I didn’t mean to do that!”

Scott sits up, one hand pressed against his right eye, “I think someone stepped on my face. Someone got their fucking cleat on my face.”

Isaac is relieved that Scott cares more about his injury than the over the pants blow job Isaac almost gave him. He offers Scott a hand, “Here, get up, there’s got to be an ice pack somewhere, right?”

“Yeah,” Scott groans, “Thanks, Isaac.” 

“Can you stop flirting for a second?” Stiles is yelling from the sidelines, “We won, motherfuckers!”

Isaac and Scott dust themselves off, Isaac desperately trying not to blush, and join the crowd of teammates who are congratulating each other and passing around water bottles on the sidelines. Scott grabs an ice pack for his face, where a nasty spike-sized bruise is already starting to form beside his eyebrow.

 

  
“Thanks for coming,” Scott says to Isaac later, as they walk back home together, “You make even getting fallen on be fun.”


	4. A Cute Gay Smooch Fest With Scott McCall

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Totoro - World's best aphrodisiac

The next morning, Isaac is just about to head out to his first day of work when he gets a text from Scott.

 **7:35 am:** gud game last nite. hang out 2day? allison and lydia r at lydia’s parents house until dinner :(

Isaac quickly taps back a reply.

 **7:37 am:** maybe later? got a job at the grocery store down the street. working until four today.

 **7:38 am:** cool, i have 2 work too anyways. mayb ill drop by at the grocery store l8r!

 

 

Isaac squints in the sunlight as he makes his way down the few blocks to the grocers. It’s a small store, cushioned between a bookshop and a massage therapist’s office. The building is made of brick, with a sign affixed over the entrance that says, _“Reyes Grocery”_.

Isaac enters the store, sees that Danny is already busy stocking the shelves. Turning his head at the sound of the door, Danny calls out to Isaac, “You ready for training day, rookie?”

He realizes three hours later that he’s probably the worst grocery store employee in Beacon Hills history. First, he puts all the canned beans where the soup should go. Thankfully, Danny manages to fix that error before Erica notices. Then, he knocks a tub of soapy water all over the floor he was supposed to be mopping. Erica notices that time, and makes a slicing motion across her throat from the other end of the store. Isaac, trying desperately to wipe the excess water away, is only eighty percent sure she isn’t serious.

The one thing he’s decent at, once the store opens for the day, is running the checkout. It’s not that hard to scan an item and put it in a bag. Scan, bag, scan, bag, scan, bag, take money, give change, next person.

Isaac has really gotten comfortable in checkout number three, when someone plops four bags of two-bite brownies onto the conveyor belt in front of him.

“What are you doing here?” He asks Scott, straightening up from the counter he was leaning against, “I thought you said you had work?”  
  
“Yeah, I did, but I work at the bookshop next door, and I’m on my break,” Scott pulls out his wallet, “I thought I told you I was working at Beacon Books?”  
  
“Oh yeah, Stiles told me,” Isaac scans the four packs of brownies, placing them gingerly in a plastic bag, “I guess I didn’t make the connection when I saw the store on my way in. That’s so cool, though!”

“Yeah, it’s alright,” Scott replies, “Stiles is an odd guy to work with, but once you get used to the constant stream of chatter, the continual snacking, and the buzzcut, he’s alright. How about you? First day on the job, it must be exciting!”  
  
“I’ve actually been screwing everything up so far. I think my boss may have threatened to murder me once or twice,” Isaac admits, glancing over to where Erica hovers around the employee doors. She catches his eye, starts walking over, and he tries to look like he’s been busy counting out Scott’s change this entire time, to the other boy’s confusion. “That’s fifteen thirty back to you. Enjoy the brownies!”

Just as he hands Scott back three bills and some coins (Isaac wouldn’t want to admit it, but his heart leaps as his fingers brush against Scott’s), Erica creeps up behind him, and smiles, almost warmly, towards Scott.

“Hey there!” She leans over the counter beside Isaac, who can’t help but be surprised at Erica’s change in demeanour, “I’m Erica, the general manager of Reyes Grocery. You’re Scott, from next door, right?”  
  
“Yeah, that’s right,” Scott says, “I started working at Beacon Books in September. It’s a great shop.”

“Well, I know you through Stiles - I tried to set him up with a friend of mine, Danny Mahealani, but he didn’t seem that into it after all. How about you, Scott?” Here, Erica smiles with an intense niceness that Isaac never knew she possessed, “Interested in a muscular hawaiian boy?”

Suddenly, all eyes are on Scott.

“Hah, um, you know, I’m alright,” Isaac’s heart, as well as his hopes of a cute gay smooch fest with Scott McCall, are almost lost, when he adds, “I like my guys lanky, to be honest.”

Erica’s sweet facade breaks - she grimaces at the two boys, tells Isaac, who is hiding a giggle behind his hand, that he should move on to the next customer, and struts back to her office.

“I guess she’s right,” Isaac says dismally, “I wouldn’t want to get fired on my first day. It was really awesome to see you, though!”

“Yeah, right back at you,” Scott gives Isaac a friendly punch across the counter, “I guess I’ll see you later? I’ll save you a brownie.”

“Sure!” Isaac waves at Scott as he walks out the door, giving himself a moment to smile at his luck before he turns back to his next customer, an old lady who checks out some frozen pizza and endless cans of tuna. Throughout the rest of his shift, he can’t help but keep thinking, _You know, I’m pretty damn lanky._

 

 

Isaac comes home to a note written neatly in bubble letters on the dining room table; _Gone 2 anger management. Make yr own dinner. B back @ 10ish._

Sighing, Isaac checks the fridge for any food he could make on his own. There’s margarine, milk, cabbage, and moldy hot dogs that have probably been there since before Isaac moved in. Dejected, he shuts the fridge door with finality and decides to read on the porch instead of listening to his growling stomach. He’ll probably order pizza, anyways.

Thirty minutes later, Isaac is reading Anger Management For Dummies, one of Derek’s books. He’s just about to give up learning how to Adopt A New Perspective when Allison and Lydia’s sedan pulls into their driveway.

“Hey, Isaac!” Allison shouts when she hops out of the front seat of the car, “How you been?”

“Alright,” He shouts back, as Lydia rounds the car, purse in one hand and a bag of groceries in the other, “Derek’s at an appointment, so I’m just hanging around.”

“Well, why not come to dinner?” Lydia’s got a scheming look in her eyes as she asks, “We’ve been hearing so many good things about you from Scott, but after the barbecue we never got any more chances to get to know you better. We’re making macaroni casserole.”

What Isaac wants to ask is _Scott talks about me?_ , but what he says out loud is, “Really? Sure! I’d love to.”

 

 

 

The rest of Scott’s house is plenty cleaner than his room. It’s probably thanks to Lydia, who sets the table with finesse as Allison and Scott, who came in from Beacon Books shortly after the girls let Isaac in, make dinner. It’s the same layout at Isaac and Derek’s house, but a lot prettier. The dining room table has a bouquet of wildflowers in the center, and impressionist paintings adorn the walls.

“That’s Monet,” Allison, who noticed Isaac looking around, points out from the kitchen, “ _Coquelicots_ , or The Poppy Field. My Dad gave it to me when I moved - Apparently my great great great grandfather knew him, or something.”

“Allison is always boasting about her fancy french family tree,” Lydia teases, setting out plates at the table, “She thinks she’s too cool for the rest of us peasants.”

“Lydia’s just saying that because she’s jealous!” Allison moves into the dining room to give Lydia a quick kiss on the lips, “Though I don’t know what’s so fancy about it. My lineage just includes incredible wealth and fame. No biggie.”

Much to Isaac’s relief, the girls seem to like him. He doesn’t exactly know why, but he really wants to impress them. Okay, he knows exactly why; he wants them to approve of him. Just in case Scott is actually interested.

Speaking of the devil, Scott chooses that moment to rush into the room with the casserole raised above his head, both hands in oven mitts.

“The casserole is done! And it’s only _slightly_ burnt!”

  


 

“So, Isaac, how long have you been living in Beacon Hills?”

“Uh, well, my whole life,” Isaac replies, with a mouth full of mac 'n cheese, “This is really good, by the way.”

“Thanks,” Lydia waves off his compliment, leans forward, “What high school did you go to, then?”  
  
“Beacon Hills High School, for two years,” Isaac feels like he’s in one of those cop shows, with Allison and Lydia as the bad cop, and Scott as the good cop, “I, uh, I dropped out after that.”

“Yo, dude!” Good Cop Scott, who’s sitting beside Isaac, gives him a clap on the back, “We all went to Beacon Hills too! You’re a couple years older than us, I guess we showed up after you’d already left.”

“Why did you drop out?” Allison twirls her fork like a dagger in her hand.

“ _Allison!_ ” Scott hisses from across the table. To Isaac, he says “I’m sorry about these two terrors. They’re like my overprotective moms.”

“Nah, it’s alright,” Isaac says, even though he agrees, “I didn’t exactly like my dad, so I dropped out and moved to the other side of town. I was in some shitty apartments, couch surfed for a bit, until I decided to move in with Derek.”

"You've had many girlfriends, Isaac?" This seems to be the question everyone was waiting for, since Allison and Lydia lean slightly towards him at the same time as Scott puts his head in his hands.

"None, actually," Isaac looks down at his pasta, twiddles his thumbs, "I'm gay, though I've never had a boyfriend either. It's hard to find someone who is fine not having sex."

The question period finally seems to be over, so the four eat their casserole over much better conversation. They share memories from Beacon Hills, reminisce over all the shitty teachers and their various disappearances. “I can’t think of one year when a teacher _didn't_  get ripped to shreds by wild animals, to be honest,” Scott says at one point, “And I’ll admit that I was more than happy when Mr. Harris disappeared.”

“Oh, I remember that guy! He only gave me detention once, but that was enough to get me on my best behaviour forever.”

Under the table, Isaac and Scott’s knees accidentally brush, sending a jolt of warmth up to Isaac’s cheeks before he jerks his leg back. Scott seems to be blushing too, though he giggles a little at Isaac’s sudden reaction. Across from them, Lydia and Allison share a look that seems to say _I told you so_.

 

 

After the plates are cleared away (and Scott has had three and a half servings of macaroni), Scott invites Isaac into the den - “How do you feel about Hayao Miyazaki?”

As it turns out, that’s the name of some old dude who makes really cute movies. Scott pops Totoro into the DVD player with such gentleness that the disc might as well be made out of precious crystals. He must be really into giant forest spirits.

Isaac doesn’t know where Allison and Lydia went off to, but he doesn’t really mind their absence. Especially when Scott returns to the couch and plops onto it so close to Isaac that their shoulders are touching.

The movie starts up, and Isaac looks beside him to see Scott childishly mouthing all the words to the song from the opening credits. He thinks it’s a little silly, until it’s about twenty minutes into the film and Isaac is just as in love with it as Scott seems to be.

It’s towards the end of the film, when Satsuki notices that Mei has gone missing, that Scott leans his head on Isaac’s shoulder and tucks his feet up onto the couch. “Sorry, I’m just really tired.”

“Nah, it’s okay,” Isaac replies coolly, although every part of him radiates with excitement.

 

 

By the time Satsuki and Mei are riding in the Catbus, Isaac can feel Scott leaning more into him, starting to drift off. It’s so fucking adorable that Isaac doesn’t say anything, but when the end credits roll and Isaac notices that it’s almost midnight and he should probably go home, he’d forced to tap Scott on the shoulder and whisper gently, “Scott? The movie’s over.”

Scott snorts awake, taking a second to stretch and yawn, then slowly righting himself up beside Isaac. He smiles shyly, “I feel asleep, didn’t I?”  
  
Isaac chuckles, “Yeah, you kinda did. I didn’t want to wake you up, but it’s pretty late, I should go.”

Scott fake-pouts, but stands up with a groan, “You liked the movie at least, right?”  
  
“Yeah, I did! Especially the part when they’re at the bus stop with Totoro in the rain. It’s a cute movie, that’s for sure.”

“Heh, yeah, I like that scene too.” Scott starts walking towards the door, and Isaac follows, puts his shoes on and slings his scarf around his neck.

Much to Isaac’s surprise, Scott reaches out a hand and plays with the tassels on his scarf.

“Why do you wear scarves in the summer? It’s California, for fuck’s sake.”

Isaac looks up to reply, but notices that Scott is only a few inches from his face, and his breathing is slightly shallow. This is the closest their faces have ever been, and Isaac knows that this is usually when people kiss. In movies, at least.

They stare into each others eyes for a good ten seconds, awkwardly waiting for the other to make a move, until Scott breaks away. “I, uh, I’ll see you tomorrow? Or, whatever, around?”

Disappointed is not a sad enough word to describe how Isaac feels. “Yeah, sure,” he replies, turning and opening Scott’s front door, “See you around.”

He’s trudged down the first two steps when a hand grasps his shoulder from behind, twirling him around on the step. Scott is behind him, up the stairs, at the perfect height to lean down slightly and capture Isaac into a gentle kiss.

Isaac reciprocates, Isaac smiles against Scott’s lips, Isaac would probably jump for joy if he weren’t kissing the hottest, sweetest boy in Beacon Hills.

They break apart after what feels like an eternity, but is probably only a few seconds.

“I’m sorry, shit,” Scott says, taking a step back, “I’ve wanted to do that for a _long_ time.”

“I - me too,” Isaac is grinning, _fuck_ , he’s the happiest man alive, “I didn’t know you liked me the same way.”  
  
“Are you kidding? I got drunk and said I liked your face! How could I have more obviously been into you?”

"And, you're, uh, okay with just smooching? Like, all the other cutesy stuff, but not the sex?"  
  
"I am more than okay with the smooching."

They’re both smiling like dweebs when applause erupts above their heads. Confused, the two look up in unison to find Allison and Lydia leaning out of their bedroom window.

“Finally!” Allison shouts down, “You two have been eye-fucking for the past couple of weeks, it took you long enough to fess up.”

 

 

Once Allison and Lydia, laughing, retreat back into their room, Isaac and Scott kiss some more. And more, and more until their lips are kinda swollen and Scott is basically falling asleep in Isaac’s arms again. Isaac eventually has to go back to his house, but not until Scott’s sleepily making him promise to be his boyfriend. Not that it takes much convincing.


End file.
